


The Second Blooming Ceremony

by rosecake



Category: Moonlight Garden
Genre: Bondage, Brothels, Desperation, F/F, Flower Maiden Dynamics, Forced Orgasms, Gangbang, Identity Issues, Manipulation, Public Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-21 21:20:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,845
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17050766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosecake/pseuds/rosecake
Summary: A flower maiden's coming of age ceremony is an important event in the Garden, and the Suh family can't let Dohwa go unpunished for missing hers.





	The Second Blooming Ceremony

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cantrip](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cantrip/gifts).



Aunt tried to downplay it, describing Dohwa's punishment as a simple variation on a normal coming of age ceremony, but Yoosun knew she wasn't going to be able to slide it past Hyewon without an outburst. Her light, matter-of-fact tone as she laid out their plans for Dohwa's upcoming second bloom did little to stall the anger mounting in Hyewon's expression as she spoke. 

"It's bad enough you still intend to put her on display, but letting them fuck her? Are you insane? Even funerals aren't that debauched!" 

Hyewon had never been a particularly amenable young woman, but over the past few months she'd started showing even less respect than before. And Aunt, for her part, had grown increasingly less patient with the insolence. 

That left Yoosun playing peacemaker more often than she would like. 

"She's a flower maiden," snapped Aunt before Yoosun had a chance to try and calm Hyewon down. "That's her whole purpose in life. To entertain bored noblewomen." 

"This is idiotic!" said Hyewon, surging to her feet. She'd started drinking in the early afternoon and she'd only hit the bottle harder once Aunt had arrived. There was an angry red flush across her face, and she swayed slightly as she leaned in towards Aunt. "What good is it being a member of the mighty Suh family if I can't even keep one little flower maiden to myself?" 

"The Peach Blossom maiden belongs to the Garden, not to you," said Aunt. "There are rules, Hyewon, and by now you should know better than to break them so casually. You're only drawing attention to yourself. And this family can't afford that kind of scrutiny, not with your situation." 

Hyewon scowled and Yoosun tensed up, ready to quickly intervene if she tried to take a swing at Aunt. Hyewon had already caused them enough trouble to last a lifetime, and Yoosun was worried that soon she might do something drastic enough that even the Suh family couldn't smooth it over. Every day it got harder to anticipate Hyewon's actions, and after years of acting as her mirror image that unpredictability was a difficult thing for Yoosun to grapple with. 

"I'm not doing this," said Hyewon. 

"Of course you aren't, you never do anything useful. Once again it's up to me and Yoosun to clean up after your mess. Just stay out of sight while we fix this." 

Yoosun had no doubt that Aunt's first choice would have been to throw both Hyewon and Dohwa into the river and let them drown together, but that would have drawn more attention than the family could safely bear. That, and a flower maiden was far too valuable an asset to kill. So she had been willing to listen when Yoosun suggested something different, a solution that would satisfy the need to punish Dohwa for her disobedience and net the Suh family a tidy sum in the process. And there wasn't much Aunt valued more than money. 

Hyewon slammed her fist down on the table, hard enough to knock over a few cups and rattle the rest of the china. "Go to-" she started, but she silenced herself when Yoosun put a hand on her arm. 

"Calm yourself," she said, pulling on Hyewon's arm until she sat back down. "We need to do something to quiet all the gossip and outrage. Dohwa might be upset for a while, but at least this way she's less likely to get hurt in the backlash against the family." 

The backlash against Hyewon, really, but it didn't seem constructive to make that point. Yoosun's hand was still on Hyewon's arm, and she could feel her trembling with anger, but there was no further objection. Once they were alone together Yoosun could try to convince her that it was for the best. 

And if she failed to convince her it didn't really matter. What Hyewon wanted didn't enter into it. The plans had already been set.

\---

They usually used red silk to tie up the blooming flower maidens, but someone had decided on a different color for Dohwa. The ribbons being wrapped around her body were white, and that seemed fitting to Yoosun. It was an unprecedented ceremony for an unprecedented flower maiden. Dohwa ought to have her own color.

She wished she could have been the one to tie Dohwa up herself, but she was acting as Hyewon, and at the moment nobody trusted Hyewon to behave herself where the Peach Blossom maiden was concerned. So she was forced to console herself with watching as Dohwa writhed around in her bonds, moaning, trying desperately to brush up against the servants even as they took pains to keep her at arms length while they worked. 

They'd let her go almost the full three days, and her suffering was evident in her moans, and in the way she was so desperate for relief that for the moment she'd let go of her dignity. She twisted her thighs together, trying to get some relief just from the friction of the ribbon, and she cried out in frustration as it did nothing to help. She wouldn't be able to do anything for herself no matter how hard she tried. She needed the touch of another woman. 

She moaned again as they pulled her up, suspending her from the ceiling just high enough that her feet couldn't find purchase on the ground, and Yoosun could feel her pulse quicken at the sound. The ribbons dug lightly into her skin as her weight rested against them, holding her in position, her body spread out for viewing like a butterfly pinned to cloth. 

"She's ready," said a servant. 

"Send the guests in," said Yoosun. Dohwa was so out of her mind that she didn't even seem to realize that Yoosun was there. Yoosun didn't want to make her wait any longer than she already had. 

Even then, it took time for the guests to make their way in. Usually only a select few were invited to a coming of age ceremony, because usually only a select few could afford to pay for the privilege. Many of the less affluent noblewomen weren't in a hurry to spend so much money just to watch, not when they could have a flower maiden of their own for weeks on end for the same price. This time was different, though. Hyewon's penchant for drama had resulted in gossip spreading across the whole kingdom, and that gossip had driven up the number of women willing to pay to see just what was so special about the Peach Blossom maiden. 

Yoosun didn't recognize most of them in their masks. She might if she tried harder, but her focus wasn't on the audience. It was on Dohwa. She'd started weeping softly, and Yoosun wasn't sure if it was from the pain of her blooming or the humiliation of being seen by so many people in her most vulnerable state. 

It didn't matter to Yoosun how many women were watching them. She was already wet from watching Dohwa be strung up, from being forced to wait for so long for the chance that should have been hers the first time around. The sound of Dohwa's soft sobbing sent a flash of guilt through her, but it was overwhelmed by the scent of peach blossoms. All she wanted at that moment was the freedom to touch her, to taste her. 

The musicians picked up their instruments and started a slow, gentle song, soft enough that the music wouldn't prevent anyone in the audience from hearing the noises Dohwa made in her bloom. 

The music was her cue to move, and Yoosun stepped onto the platform directly behind Dohwa. So close, and at the very last second she stopped, suddenly uncertain. 

"Hyewon?" said Dohwa, her voice quiet and uncertain as she tried to look over her shoulder. Hopefully too quiet to have been heard by the audience, but by now they probably already all knew full well that she didn't address her mistress by title. 

"Mistress," said Yoosun, quietly. "You have to call me mistress when we aren't alone." 

"Please," said Dohwa, the muscles in her shoulders straining as she pulled against her bonds. "It hurts so badly, it's so much worse than last time." 

"It's alright now," said Yoosun, running a hand along her back. 

Dohwa shuddered violently in response. "Mistress, please. I can't wait any longer." 

Her skin was smooth under Yoosun's hand. Smooth and unmarked; she wasn't like Hyewon. Her flowers bloomed on the front. "It's okay," she said. "I'll take care of you." 

Yoosun put a hand on Dohwa's hip, pulling her flush against her body, and she sighed as Dohwa tried to push up harder against her. She placed her other hand halfway up the inside of Dohwa's thigh, dragging her fingers upward towards her core, sliding over the skin of her thighs and the silk bonds already soaked through with Dohwa's wetness. 

Yoosun had never bothered to wonder about what they did with the silk after the ceremonies were over, but she was determined she was going to keep the silk holding Dohwa up. It would make a beautiful keepsake. 

"Please," said Dohwa, trying to shift herself down onto Yoosun's hand even though the silk ties were in her way, keeping her in her place until Yoosun chose to touch her. 

Yoosun couldn't see Dohwa's flowers from this position, couldn't really see anything of her pressed in this close from behind, but it didn't matter. She'd already seen plenty of her. Now she wanted to feel her, to let the perfume of her flowers smother every other sensation. 

She pressed her fingers into the folds of Dohwa's cunt, sliding them forward through the wet heat until she found her clit, and that was all it took to make Dohwa come. She tried to bite down on the moan, but it was unmistakable the way her whole body shook with it, and the crowd rumbled with excitement. 

Dohwa was crying again, her sobs louder this time. "It's not- I still-" 

"I know." Yoosun spoke low enough that only Dohwa could hear her, and she wiped away her tears with her free hand before letting it settle at her hip again. "Once is never enough, not when they leave you for so long. It's okay. I'll take care of you." 

She really shouldn't. She'd already performed her ceremonial obligations as the mistress, and a number of women were going to have their turn with Dohwa before the night was over. The more given over to her blooming she was the easier it would be on her, and the more relief she got from Yoosun the more clear-headed she'd be for everything that followed. 

Yoosun had waited for so long, though, and she wanted more time too badly to resist. She couldn't make herself wait. She rocked her hand in and out, stroking Dohwa's clit as her free hand roamed her body, feeling her thighs, her stomach, her chest. She cupped a breast, catching the nipple between her fingers, and Dohwa sighed as she pulled at it. 

She couldn't see it, not with her face buried in Dohwa's hair, but she still knew exactly where the little diamond seed on her neck was from memory. The flower maidens were always sensitive where their seeds where. She pressed her fingers to it, and when Dohwa moaned she pressed deeper, until Dohwa was bucking against her hand. 

Yoosun sighed and leaned forward, resting her head against Dohwa's shoulder. She was breathing in short, rapid gasps, and for a moment Yoosun wondered what it would feel like to wrap a hand around her neck and hold it like that. Hyewon had done it to her before, and she was acting as Hyewon now; maybe Dohwa would like it as much as Yoosun had. 

But she was only the first woman to use Dohwa tonight, and she didn't want to set the pace too rough. She knew many of the women waiting their turns, and some of them made Hyewon look like a saint even on her worst days. She didn't want to encourage them. 

Instead she pressed her mouth to Dohwa's neck, and she only bit down a little as Dohwa started to spasm around her hand again. A small mark. She could leave something more dramatic next time. 

Dohwa shifted in her restraints, the flushed color of her skin standing in stark relief against the ribbons as she came. Yoosun held her as she shook, not moving at all until Dohwa was still, and then she took a step back. 

"Wait," she said as Yoosun left her. "Wait, I-" 

"You'll be taken care of," said Yoosun, and as she walked away another woman stepped forward to take her place. Probably one of the endless royal cousins.

Her legs were shaking, and it was struggle to keep her composure as she walked over to the box where she'd sit and watch for the rest of the night. She planned to stay the whole time. It would be taken as a sign of weakness if she left. It would also be taken as a sign of weakness if she reached down into her robes to touch herself, even though half the audience was already wrist deep into the kisaengs or flower maidens they'd paid to keep them company through the night. 

The royal that had followed her was feeling Dohwa up from the front, blocking everyone's view of the flower maiden's body, and Yoosun knocked away the cup a servant was offering her and took the bottle instead. 

It was going to be a long night, and really, nobody expected Hyewon to be dignified about it.

\---

Dohwa passed out before the ceremony was over, and Yoosun took the time to clean her up before leaving her in her bed. It was a shame the Lotus maiden had died; Yoosun would have trusted her to help see to Dohwa's recovery. Instead, Yoosun did the best she could on her own, and Dohwa would have to manage by herself if she woke up in the night.

Yoosun still had obligations to take care of. 

The scent of roses permeated the air long before she reached Hyewon's rooms, making her wonder how they'd avoided getting caught for so long when the signs were so obvious. By the time she opened the door to Hyewon's room the scent was overwhelming. 

Hyewon had only left a single candle burning, so the room was dark. Yoosun shut the door behind her quietly. Even in the dim light she could see Hyewon laid out on the floor, her robe wide open like a blanket underneath her. Other than the robe she was naked, her legs spread wide open as she slid her hand between them, as if she could somehow ease the pain just by touching herself. 

"Yoosun," she said, her voice distorted by her heavy breathing, "you were gone so long."

She lifted her arm to cover her eyes and spread her legs even wider, canting her hips up in invitation, and the rose scent got even stronger. Strong enough to overwhelm the memory of the peach blossoms from earlier. 

"Please," said Hyewon, her cunt glistening wet with arousal in the candlelight. She was so proud, she only ever begged when she was in bloom. "Please, it's been so long, I really need you!" 

She'd only barely begun to bloom when Yoosun had left to oversee the preparations for Dowha's ceremony. Less than a day and she was already in this sorry state. Dohwa's potions had altered her schedule some, maybe they'd messed with the intensity of the bloom as well. There was still a lot they didn't know about how the flower poison and the antidote worked. 

Hyewon was still begging for it, her voice rising and falling as she shifted around on the floor in an effort to ease her pain, and for a moment Yoosun thought about leaving her like that. If she left, Hyewon would die of desperation, and then Yoosun would be free to take her place, to live the life she'd spent so many years preparing for. 

At least if the flower poison didn't get her. 

"Yoosun!" cried Hyewon. The pain was clear in her voice, and Yoosun sighed as she got down on her knees, all thoughts of watching Hyewon squirm for the night leaving her head. Cruelty wouldn't change anything about their situation. She leaned in and kissed Hyewon between her legs. 

"Ahhh, that's it, that's it," mumbled Hyewon absent-mindedly, the pain in her voice turning to pleasure as Yoosun lapped at her clit. She grasped Yoosun's hair, hard enough to pull the wig free, and then her fingers wound through Yoosun's real hair, pressing her down. 

People complained about the licentious nature of young noblewomen, but it wasn't hard for Yoosun to see how they all got so caught up in the flower maidens. Yoosun wasn't even touching herself and she could already feel the pleasure in her core mounting, building up just from the taste and the smell and feel of Hyewon under her. There was something to the flower maidens, something she couldn't get from normal hisaengs. Some kind of pheromone, maybe. Something that made her feel like she could suffocate in floral perfume and die happy. 

Hyewon came, her thighs pressing around Yoosun's head as her legs trembled, and Yoosun waited for the aftershocks of the orgasm to fade before she stood up, pulling her own clothes off as quickly as she could. When she moved back to the floor she settled over Hyewon's leg, bearing down to let herself slid hard against Hyewon's skin. 

Hyewon rocked in rhythm with her as she moved, her breathing still heavy. "Did you fuck Dohwa? That was the plan, wasn't it?" 

Yoosun closed her eyes. There was an ugly edge of jealousy in Hyewon's voice, even though she'd already taken Dohwa's first bloom. "The mistress was the one who had her," said Yoosun. She pressed her fingers into Hyewon's mouth and Hyewon sucked automatically, her soft tongue sliding over Yoosun's skin. "Maybe you can still taste her?" 

Hyewon's eyes narrowed, and for a moment Yoosun thought she might bite, but instead she only sucked harder as she shifted up against Yoosun's leg. 

It was enough to tip Yoosun over the edge, her own orgasm hitting her with surprising speed, lighting up her nerve endings for one blissful moment before the feeling subsided, leaving her exhausted in the wake of it.

"One more time," said Hyewon, reaching for her hand, and it was never only one more time. One of these days, Yoosun would do her best to please her, and it simply wouldn't work anymore. The flowers would spread until they covered her, head to toe, choking the life out of her. 

And then it would be Yoosun's turn to be Hyewon. Not just for a day or two out of the month, but for the rest of her life. 

Then, and only then, Dohwa could finish her potion. She wouldn't be able to share it - there was too much riding on things in the Garden staying the same as they always had - but she could use it on herself. They might even grow old together. It was a vision of the future Yoosun had spent a lot of time imagining over the past few months. 

At that moment, though, it was hard to concentrate on anything besides roses.

\---

"Thank you for visiting me," said Dohwa. Her voice was low and her eyes cast downward as she sipped the tea Yoosun had brought for her. "You're always so thoughtful, Unnie."

"I'm glad you were willing to see me," said Yoosun. "I know last night must have been hard for you." 

"I'm fine," said Dohwa, but her voice trembled when she spoke. "I barely even remember most of it." 

That wasn't uncommon when flower maidens let the bloom go on for too long before satisfying it. They tended to lose their mind a little. Too many times in a row and Dohwa would lose it permanently, but Yoosun wouldn't let it get that far. 

"Have you ever had sex before?" asked Dohwa. 

Yoosun had fucked more women than most of the flower maidens. "Sometimes," said Yoosun. "When I'm pretending to be Hyewon. It's part of my role." 

"But never as yourself?" asked Dohwa, looking at her. "Just- because you wanted to?" 

Dohwa was a sweet girl. Even though she was a flower maiden, she still had a sweet girl's view of what love should look like. "No," said Yoosun. "Not yet." 

It was barely even a lie. She'd wanted Dohwa last night, but she'd been standing in Hyewon's place then. She was always just standing in Hyewon's place. She only ever got what she wanted when Hyewon wanted the same thing, and even then, it was only if Hyewon didn't get to it first. 

Dohwa nodded, absent-mindedly rubbing at her seed. There was a bright pink flower bud just starting to bloom right beneath it, and Yoosun wasn't sure if Dohwa had realized it was there yet. Making the flower maidens wait to satisfy the bloom usually meant that it took longer to fully disperse. 

"I don't remember how many women there were after Hyewon," said Dohwa. Tears welled in her eyes, and Yoosun leaned closer to her. "That's not the part that bothers me, though." 

"Dohwa-" said Yoosun, meaning to reach out to her, but before she could move Dohwa had already flung herself into her arms. 

"However many of them there were, I don't think it was enough," she said. She was still in the robe she'd slept in, and it was slipping down her shoulders as the knot at the waist came undone. There were bruises along her ribs and necks, marks left from the night before, but they looked pale and inconsequential compared to her peach blossoms. 

"I'm so sorry." Dohwa wrapped her arms around Yoosun's neck as the petals of the peach blossom on her neck unfurled. "I don't mean to be like this." 

"It's fine," said Yoosun. She reached out to stroke Dohwa's hair. The pink was lovely, but she was still used to the old color. She wanted to take time to get accustomed to it. "I understand." 

"I need you," said Dohwa. Yoosun leaned down to kiss the flowers on her neck, and Dohwa sighed. "I want it to be you. Is that okay? I don't want strangers. I want it to be you, Yoosun." 

"Of course," said Yoosun. She slipped her hand between Dohwa's legs and she gasped in pleasure, her arms tightening around Yoosun's shoulders. "I've wanted you-" she started, and then decided it wasn't really what she meant. 

"Whatever you need, I want you to get it from me," she said. "Just me." 

It might take time, and it might take patience, but eventually Dohwa was going to be the one thing she wouldn't have to share.


End file.
